QRG Capital Management Inc. Lowers Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

QRG Capital Management Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 2.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 480,946 shares of the company’s stock after selling 13,179 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson comprises approximately 0.7% of QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest position. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $69,554,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vinva Investment Management Ltd grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 111,448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,988,000 after buying an additional 7,110 shares in the last quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 185,093 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,996,000 after acquiring an additional 9,309 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Pacific Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at $949,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 57.9% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 3,467 shares of the company’s stock worth $501,000 after purchasing an additional 1,271 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 19.6% during the third quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 22,629 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,667,000 after purchasing an additional 3,710 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $62,928.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,357,552.70. This trade represents a 2.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Mark A. Weinberger bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $147,220. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James decreased their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $181.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $162.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America decreased their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $159.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Leerink Partners dropped their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $182.00 to $169.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.67.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $165.23 on Friday. Johnson & Johnson has a fifty-two week low of $140.68 and a fifty-two week high of $168.85. The company has a market capitalization of $397.81 billion, a PE ratio of 24.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $150.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $156.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $22.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.44 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 34.24% and a net margin of 18.20%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.29 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 74.59%.

About Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson is a holding company, which engages in the research, development, manufacture, and sale of products in the healthcare field. It operates through the Innovative Medicine and MedTech segments. The Innovative Medicine segment focuses on immunology, infectious diseases, neuroscience, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolism, and pulmonary hypertension.